Leeds United are planning to increase Wilfried Gnonto’s salary as part of their impending contract negotiations.
According to Football Insider, the Whites are willing to raise his weekly compensation in order to deter any January transfer interest.
Leeds United said last week that they intend to begin contract negotiations with the 19-year-old.
The Championship club wants to keep the Italian due to his importance to the first team squad at Elland Road.
Gnonto was the subject of significant transfer speculation throughout the summer transfer season, but Leeds remained steadfast in their decision to keep the midfielder until the deadline.
Who is looking for Wilfried Gnonto?
Following Leeds’ relegation to the second level, a number of clubs were connected with a move for the forward.
Gnonto had an impressive first season with the Yorkshire club, but he was unable to keep the club in the Premier League, as they finished 19th in the standings.
From 24 games in the top division, the teenager contributed two goals and four assists, receiving high plaudits for his efforts.
This fueled talk about him leaving, with Everton being the most strongly involved.
According to reports, the Merseyside club offered proposals of up to £25 million to get the Leeds midfielder.
The Toffees were even considering an offer for closer to £30 million, but decided against it due to their insistence that the player will not be sold this summer.
Despite significant transfer demand, Leeds refused to budge on their stance that the attacker was not for sale.
A fee of over £30 million would have constituted a significant profit over the roughly £4 million they paid to buy Gnonto from FC Zurich in the summer of 2022.
Wilfried Gnonto, how have you been this season?
As the transfer saga continued, Gnonto refused to play for the squad in the latter parts of August.
However, as it became evident that a transfer would not take place, the winger returned to action.
This season, the Italian has made four appearances in the Championship, scoring one goal for Daniel Farke’s side.
Farke has supervised two wins in the squad’s first six games of the new season, putting the team in tenth place.
Leeds are unbeaten in their previous four games, and they play Hull City away on Wednesday evening.
Should Leeds United pay Wilfried Gnonto more?
According to Capology, Leeds pay Gnonto £20,000 a week, putting him at the lower end of the price scale for first-team regulars.
So a raise would be a better indication of his future value to the team.
It should also persuade him to stay with the club in the long run, as a move to the Premier League would have been fairly lucrative.
Gnonto could be crucial to the team’s rapid return to the Premier League, so rewarding him with a new deal makes sense if it can also deter any January transfer window interest.
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